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I have estimates for replacement of my furnace and A/C from two local contractors. One quoted me Carrier and the other offerred me York or Armstrong. The carrier estimate was exactly twice as much as the York/Armstrong. I am thinking the Carrier is better equipment but not worth twice as much. Am I wrong? Given the choice of York or Armstrong for the same price which would be best value assuming comparable equipment? I didn't get model numbers yet but the quote is for a 4 ton 12 seer A/C with an 80 per cent efficiency gas furnace. I have a 2200 sqft single level house. All advice appreciated.

are they apples to apples or is Carrier their Infinity system with a high effeciency furnace? If apples to apples I wouldn't pay twice as much. York and Armstrong are respected brands, and I can tell you firsthand that I'm not overly impressed with Carrier's quality,at least in their light commercial equipment. Higher end residential might be better though......and if you live in a cold climate you might want to consider a higher eff. furnace with gas prices rising.....just a thought. OOps just saw the fl in your name....what about a heatpump,or a higher seer straight cool with electric heat if you're in south florida?Electric heat works well in a well insulated home.

[Edited by smokin68 on 06-22-2005 at 01:11 PM]

If everything was always done "by the book"....the book would never change.

Everything being equal, there is no appreciable difference in costs between the York and Carrier brands. Armstrong should be able to be priced slightly lower.

Now, when it comes to the final manufacturing of your system, which is done in your home by the installer, you can really get into some differences in cost versus value.

Was the Carrier rep a spiffy looking salesman and the York rep a guy that looks like he also works on equipment? If so, you have to pay the added cost of that salesman.

Was the Carrier rep a guy in a nice neat uniform that still let you know he works on what he sells and the York rep wearing dirty jeans with dirty hands and sporting metalwhere on his face?

You are purchasing a system, not just an appliance. That system depends on the people who are going to finish building that system in your home and those same people properly setting up that equipment. Choose the equipment based on features that you may require but choose the installation company based on their ability to finish building your system properly.

...seek, and ye shall find;..

So always seek the Truth, not just what you want to believe to be true

If you are comparing like products, prices should be similar. Armstrong has no reason to be less, its quality & features are similar to the other brands. Carrier has no reason to cost more other than more advertising. Between the 3 brands, each has a low end line & premium line so be sure all are quoting similar. Posting model #s would help us sort it out for you.

It seems to be very difficult to get the contractors to talk about model numbers. I am trying to get that info on the York and Carrier estimates. I think I have ruled out Armstrong at least for now. Things are getting more complicated, I now have estimates on a Bryant Legacy system, a Heil system and a Trane system. All of these estimates are in the same ball park with the York and much lower than the Carrier. The contractor says that Bryant is the same equipment as Carrier, is that correct? Is a trane system worth a few hundred dollars more? I don't have a model number on the Trane yet.

You can be sure that the installation part of the price you get is 2/3 of the cost of the job and the equipment is about a 1/3. (not counting metal, piping and all that). I suggest there may just be a different level of quality in the installation.